Redemption of a village gone bad
by Gydius
Summary: The Uchihas have been slaughtered and the young Naruto now faces death charges in Konoha for killing a civilian, the price was banishment, along with his new teacher for four years. Now with an ever present hate for the village that caused him so much pain 16yr old Naruto is back… Could he fit in again with his dream of being the hokage long gone and forgotten?
1. Chapter 1

Content edited 2.21.2014 v1.2 just a couple of grammar corrections, putting proper separators between story parts and will be adding couple explanations at the end of the chapter as I did not explain some things properly... Especial thanks to **Narutofan8762 **for pointing some of those out in the review and the answers will be at the bottom and i strongly suggest reading before the next chapter.

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto/Naruto Shippuden and all rights are under Mr. Kishimoto and/or his respectable company, publisher and so on... **

This is my first fiction and I aim to make it a long one... Please enjoy and any advice and critique is welcome :D

Especially if you notice a couple inconsistencies no matter how small please feel free to point them out because they can screw with the story in the long run.

* * *

The young blonde 12yr old boy was walking toward the village with his hands in his pockets and a face so sad it would make a grown man cry. Naruto loved the outskirts of the village, the numerous training fields and the forest which surrounded Konoha. One of the main reasons was probably because it was usually devoid of people, other than a couple of groups training here and there. It was the place he took long walks especially when something was bothering him, and something was. He stole a glance up to the skies noticing it was getting a bit dark and decided to up his tempo a bit, as it was forbidden for minors (academy students under the age of 16) to be outside the village after dark.

The boy crashed into someone with a large THUMP, sending both of them down on their ass. "Oi… What ya think… hic… you doing?!" said the man with angry voice.

Naruto quickly got up and apologized several times before helping the man up. As he glanced over him he could tell he was a farmer considering he had pitchfork and smelled of manure. The man was severely drunk as well.

"You damn… hic… kid… watch where you walking." said the man now barely standing. As he was about to turn around a look of recognition flashed in his eyes… "Youre… Youre… That kid!"

Naruto knew immediately what was going on. 'Great another problem he did not need'

As he was about to turn around, the man grabbed him by the shirt and pulled him face to face. Naruto was able to smell the alcohol on the man not to mention his flashing eyes.

"Why did you do it?! Haa?!" jelled the man angrily spewing spit all over his face.

"Do what?! What did I do?!" replied the now slightly frightened Naruto. As much as he was used to the constant abuse by the villagers it was rarely physical like this.

"Why did you kill my wife and kids you monster?! Why?!" continued the man now raising the boy up in the air and shaking him violently.

Naruto was now really frightened, and trying to shake the man of as he was now dangling in mid-air.

"You should be the one dead!" the man continued with his eyes flashing.

Naruto finally managed to pry the man's hand off his shirt, but fell down on his back with a good amount of force since the man was a lot taller than him. Naruto was now trying his best to get away from the farmer and it was not easy, as his whole body was now trembling from fear. Managing to roll to the side and end up on all fours a second before he actually tried to run, a sharp pain ran through his back knocking him down again.

The man hammered the pitchfork in Naruto's back, "Damn monster fox!" and another stab, and another and another each accompanied by a scream from the boy… The man now fell backwards shaking and surveying the scene in front of him. The boy was lying in a small pool of blood and was not moving. It took the man several minutes to truly realize what he had done, he did not think much, a knife was out of his pocket and he killed himself.

* * *

Naruto was standing in front of a huge golden cage in some kind of a sewer with water almost to his knees. A pair of red eyes opened on the other side of the cage staring at and trough him. A shiver went up his spine as he finally knew where he was.

The boy was not frightened just sad. "So I really am a monster huh?" he said out loud to no one in particular. Tears started forming on the boy's face, the tears dropped one after another and the boy started crying his heart out.

**One week later**

The Sandaime hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi was standing in front of the council of elders as well as the all heads of Konoha clans.

"You can't be serious! I will not allow it." yelled Hiruzen Sarutobi with his voice echoing through the council room.

"The decision stands." replied Danzo in a calm voice.

As the hokage was about to respond it was Koharu who beat him to it "All the civilian authorities are calling for the boy's execution, this was the best we managed to do."

They were suddenly interrupted as the large wooden doors leading in the council room were violently opened almost knocking them down. Everyone's attention was focused as a man was slowly walking towards the council. Eight elite ANBU who were guarding the room on the other side not moments before, could be seen unconscious behind him. One of the legendary sannin Jiraiya was walking towards the council with anger spilling from what it had seemed every fiber on the man's body. He stood next to the hokage glaring at the council, not many even willing to meet his gaze.

"Is this what passes as justice in Konoha now?" asked Jiraiya glaring at the council

Danzo who seemed the only one not affected by this intrusion replied "The evidence speaks for itself."

"What evidence?" asked Shukaku Nara smiling; "The testimony of a lone girl witness who switches her story back and forward?"

"Then simply probe the boy's mind and be done with it." spoke Homura

Now it was Inoichi Yamanaka who was on his feet and slamming his fists on the desk in front of him, "I have been through this already…" clearly regretting his sudden burst of anger he sat himself back down before speaking again, "As I was saying preforming the mind probe on a minor whose chakra network in the brain was not fully developed could lead to major disabilities or even death."

"Then if you are unable we will find someone who will!" it was the civilian representative who was standing now and clearly not happy

"Neither I or" Inoichi was now looking directly at Danzo; "ANYONE from my clan will participate in this action."

"Then why not probe the girl then? She is old enough." asked Hiashi, the head of the Hyuga clan

"The civilian rights act clearly states that any form of interrogation upon their members will not be tolerated." replied the civilian representative with his hands now crossed as if defending himself

"Unless…" encouraged Shukaku

"Unless the person was directly charged or suspicious of withholding information and she is neither…" replied the now visibly annoyed councilor

"Enough!" it was now Jiraiya who spoke focusing everyone's gaze upon him "We all know why this proceeding is happening. The council of elders wants to keep Naruto in custody till his 16th birthday to keep him from becoming a ninja and in turn have him confined to the village indefinitely even if evident that he had nothing to do with the man's death."

Silence followed Jiraiya's words with everyone's eyes now going from the sage to the elders. If this statement affected the elders in any way they weren't showing. It was Koharu who first broke the silence.

"This was issued to protect the boy as well as the village especially in light of the recent events." as she spoke she also pointed at the now empty Uchiha seat next to the Hjuga councilor.

"The man tried to kill Naruto and we are punishing him." said the hokage letting out a smoke filled sigh.

"The curcimstances of his death has not yet been resolved" replied the civilian councilor narrowing his eyes

To everyone's surprise it was Chosa who replied, "I may not be as smart as Shukaku or the hokage… But what part of a dead man whose own throat was cut by his own knife in his own hand was hard to get? " He also made sure to stress 'OWN' part to make his point.

"That's exactly why we revoked the execution Chosa ," replied Homura smiling at the large man, as his simplistic explanation was blunt but refreshing, "but we still need to remove the boy from Konoha a bit to calm the situation down."

Jiraiya narrowed his eyes a bit but widening his smile to the last statement, "Then I have a perfect solution for you, I will take the boy with me till his 16th birthday and return him to the village in time for the gennin exams giving the matter time to settle."

Homura flinched a bit cursing his poor choice of words to Choza giving the Sannin a perfect opportunity to make his point. The effect was immediate, as the council room was now full of voices whit the councilors mutually discussed the possibility. Sarutobi actually smiled a bit looking to his former student, he may not be the smartest ninja around but was always good at reading people.

Danzo may have shown a bit of concern on his face regarding the last statement if only for a second, eying the council room not happy with what he saw he coughed loudly to get everyone's attention, "In light of the current events,(pointing to the Uchiha massacre which happened the day after Naruto's imprisonment) the danger of other villages taking advantage of our weakened state is at a long time high," He waited a bit to let the words sink in with the councilors before continuing, " while not going as far as directly attacking us, they may try to hurt us with something like capturing our jinchuriki who would be out of the village and our protection."

This in turn caused another wave of bickering among the councilors. Jiraiya on the other hand had enough of the proceedings. The wave of killing intent from the sage swept the room. The effect was suffocating ,the civilian representative fell from his chair trembling on the ground; even the two most powerful people there were affected. Danzo had sweat forming on his forehead while the hokage took a couple of steps back from his student. The rest had an outright fear on their faces.

"Then let me rephrase my point," said Jiraiya still emanating fear, "You are already on war terms with one of the sannin while the other is avoiding the village… If you do not want to hand the boy to me I will take him by force and you will have one more sannin to wage war against!"

The ANBU units that were in hiding not moments before spring to action. Three were already by the hokage while the rest were in front of each council seat kunai in hand and ready for a fight if need be. The sage paid them no heed and continued but this time shouting and looking at Danzo in particular, "And don't give me that crap about protecting the boy while under your nose he was nearly killed by a civilian... Oh and you let an entire clan be slaughtered!"

And there was silence as no one dared to even move a muscle except for the sage whose eyes were moving from person to person studying each one extensively. He finally released his intent to kill letting sighs of relief throughout the room. The ANBU seemed the ones most relived, while each had a mask to hide their facial expressions, their body movement fooled no one as they retracted their blades and went back to hiding. If it came to a fight they would all perish and they knew it.

Another ten minutes later and the decision was made to let Naruto go with the sannin with an order of banishment in affect for four years or till his genin exam. For further protection a rumor was to be released in and out of the village that he was dead. The elders were not particularly happy with the outcome and made sure everyone knew that.

* * *

The boy was crying with his head in his knees. He was in a holding cell hidden deep below Konoha. It was a dark and cold place, no light and no windows with a strong chakra suppression seal on each cell to further weaken inmates. The only thing he could see was the thick steel door in front of him with a small opening below for food. A sharp metal noise reached him. He raised his head still crying, just to see a small opening with a bit of light peeking on top of the door only to be quickly replaced by a couple of cold eyes behind an ANBU mask.

"What's wrong monster?" sneered the voice; "I heard that they will execute you soon…" continued the voice while now laughing maliciously and closing the opening. The boy barely had time to lower his head back to his knees, when another loud sound reached his ears.

A couple of moments later and his door was opened, releasing light in his dark cell and effectively blinding him in the process. Somehow managing to face the light a large man stood in front of him, he had a full gray outfit with open red jacket decorated by a yellow orb on each side, his face looked pretty old with red line marking under each his eyes, as well as spiky gray hair with what seemed a hair tail stretching to the more than half his back. He looked really scary and Naruto quickly took a couple of steps back on all fours hitting the wall behind in the process. The man was in front of him crouching and holding one hand up in front as if to raise him up. The first thing that caught his attention was the scene behind the man. The ANBU was slammed to the door opposite of his with such force that it bended to a point where he was siting in the door unconscious, or maybe even dead.

Nothing in the world could have prepared him for what happened next, "Come Naruto… Lets get out of here."

The man was smiling with such warmth that it cast more light in his cell than the opened door ever did. Naruto took his hand and surprised the man by hugging him immediately, while crying out of happiness. Jiraiya was still dumfounded, he was expecting everything but the scene he encountered. The boy in one of the darkest places in Konoha, abused by this way for a full week, a mere boy at that… He put his arms around the boy making himself a promise he would never let such a thing happen to him again whatever it takes.

They left the village in the cover of darkness bound not to return in 4 years.

* * *

Izumo and Koketsu were sitting in the checkpoint house on the entrance to the village. Both bored with Izumo actually sleeping on the desk.

"Hey Izumo! Heyy!"

"What!?" answered Izumo annoyed still lying on his face pretending to be asleep

"I think the other jounin were lying to us when they said that the quickest way to a promotion is to do this in between missions.."

Izumo seeing that his friend would not let him sleep raised his head lazily, "Why do you think so?"

"Well no one else ever takes this post willingly, when I told the other chunnin, they always say that they will apply as well, but never do for some reason…"

"You really think that Kakashi would lie to us you idiot?!"

"Hey I'm not an idiot"

And they continued to bicker for some time after that. In the end neither one seemed to back away as each crossed their arms and looked away from each other in defiance.

"Are you finally done?" a voice said

Both boys almost had a small heart attack as they didn't even see that someone was in front of them, and for a full minute at that. Then came a realization that it was one of the sannin as well, which made matters worse. After a minute of bowing and hastily apologizing as well as a bit of blaming each other, Jiraiya had a vein pulsing dangerously as it seemed to go on endlessly. A couple of moments later they each had a lump on their head and were silent and alert.

"Ok we will notify the hokage that you will be meeting him soon, but…" said Izumo now looking to the cloaked figure next to the sage," what about your friend here?"

The cloaked figure just slightly glanced to them but said nothing.

"He is with me…" beamed Jiraiya silencing him before moving inward towards the village with the figure following silently behind.

After they were out of sight Izumo turned towards Koketsu, "Who do you think that was?"

"Really don't care."

"But isn't that out of protocol… We are supposed to enter every person's name on entrance."

"Do you want Jiraiya to hit us again!?"

And with that said the two chunnin resumed their usual job but a lot more alert this time around.

* * *

The two men were walking silently. Jiaraya gazed at his student, friend, foster son. Even after all this time he still did not know what to think of him as he was all of those, "So happy to be back Naruto?"

The boy just looked at him.

'Ok dumb question"

* * *

**So now up to a couple of explanations. The required age for academy students to become gennin is 16 to apply for the exams, in the future they may be a couple of exceptions to that rule but I promise to explain them properly if such a need arises. Naruto is 12 years old in the begging of this storyline and a student, as most of you have probably guessed will be 16yr old upon the return to Konoha. Since I'm aging the gennin I will also age most of the original events that I plan to use in the future with a couple of exceptions. I apologize for screwing a bit at the start and contadicting myself, in light of this update i have changed the original "pretty dark" to "getting a bit dark" and "ninja under 16" to "students under 16"**

**The exact time of the Uchiha massacre will be revealed in the next chapter if not clear in this one.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto/Naruto Shippuden and all rights are under Mr. Kishimoto and/or his respectable company, publisher and so on...**

**Now to more important stuff, I somehow have a feeling that some of you will not like a certain action I will be making a character do somewhere in this chapter, I apologize in advance but will be explaining it by the end. I tried to make this chapter a bit less gloomy than the last(not completely) so enjoy.**

**As always feel free to point out any insights, inconsistencies or anything else for that matter and thanks for reading. **

* * *

The boy just looked at him.

'Ok dumb question"

"Naruto I'm guessing you have some catching up to do. I'll go forward to report to the hokage while you get your bearings a bit, he'll want to see you later as well I imagine."

The boy stopped and glanced around not listening, he sensed someone watching them. As his gaze faced the building roof in question a shadow that was there a second ago vanished. Jiraiya felt it too but did not think much about it… He put his hand on the boy's back while saying, "You can't blame them for keeping an eye on you. You are dead."

"I can." replied the annoyed Naruto now lowering his hood and facing his teacher, "You seem to be happy to be back."

"Hahahahahahah that I am… The best research material can be found back home" said Jiaraya with a wide grin and his eyes surveying the surroundings looking for inspiration.

Naruto just shook his head and sighed, he loved and respected his sensei probably more than anyone but he was still a pervert like no other.

"Look you're in your best years of your life," said Jiraiya now putting one hand around his student and drawing him closer, "and in a village with a lot of nice young girls."

"Ero-sennin, you're drooling a bit." said Naruto rolling his eyes and skillfully escaping his grip, "and I'm not interested in girls right now."

This remark earned him a hit to the head staggering him a bit. Jiraiya was now giving his student one of his glares, "If you're not good I'll send you to the brothel, again!"

Naruto thought about that for a bit and just and just shrugged remembering the last occasion that happened, "I'll get you banned again." he replied with a laugh.

"Why you little brat!" said the now visibly annoyed Jiraiya but managed to keep his cool because of the people around them. The thought of summoning Gamaken and having him chase the boy was rather appealing now. He sighed at the thought as Naruto would turn it into training. He did the next best thing he knew the boy hated. "Naruto see you in a couple of hours." he waved happily

"Don't you dare!"

But it was too late as the sage was gone in a swirl. The now annoyed boy was standing next to a small stack of leafs, he made sure to kick them before he continuing forward. He really hated that.

* * *

Jiraiya was in front of the hokage giving him a rundown of the last couple of years with Hiruzen listening carefully. It took him roughly an hour to explain most of the important details.

"So the boy still hates the village?" asked Hiruzen looking concerned

"I'm afraid so," replied Jiraiya, "not that I can blame him."

The hokage took a long smoke from his pipe analyzing everything he heard. He knew the boy had every reason to be angry if not more so, but hoped he would at least give the village a chance. He walked to the picture of the fourth hokage and just stood there for a couple of moments before asking, "Are you still going to go with the plan Jiraiya?"

"Yes, I will leave Naruto here for 2 years. If he does not change his opinion within that time I will take him away and never force him back here again, sooner if anything even remotely similar to that event happen." replied Jiraiya looking serious

"I suppose that's fair all things considered."

"I owe Minato and Kushina that much at the very least."

The hokage finally tuned around to face the sage, "So have you told him about his heritage?"

"Not yet," replied Jiraiya, the hokage let a sigh of relief, "But," continued the sage, "he will find out eventually. The boy is a lot smarter than you think."

"You know why we did it, he would probably be long dead had we not." replied the hokage as if apologizing.

Jiraiya waved him away, "I'm not looking for an apology old man, just warning you in advance."

"Oh… There is one more thing I forgot to mention." said Jiraiya

"And that is?"

"Well, how do I say this… He's red."

* * *

Naruto was now walking with no goal in mind, as much as he was hated to admit it this place did feel nostalgic. He remembered what the sage said about girls not too long ago. He chuckled to himself. Couple of years back it might have been a different thing, he did like Sakura at what seemed a lifetime ago. But after the prison incident as he liked to call it, his view of pretty much everything had changed. He tried so hard in the past, even when rejected. No, clobbered would be a better term to use. While she did not know what he was, like the adults did, she also treated him like dirt as most.

He was getting hungry and there was one place that always made him a smile. Ten minutes later and he was in front of Ichiraku's place. He pulled his hood up and took a seat. Teuchi took one look at him and asked, "So ten portions as usual Naruto?

To say that the boy was shocked would be an understatement. He passed several ninja and former classmates and not one of them even glanced at him. Here he didn't even lower his hood and the old man saw right through him. Finally managing to collect himself, "How did you know old man? I am dead y'know?"

"I was in contact with your teacher from the start, he did inform me you were returning today and I would be insulted had you not come to visit." said Teuchi with a matter of fact tone

This was something Naruto did not expect but was pleased none the less. He let a sigh and brought his hood down smiling, "Thanks old man but two will do fine."

"Wow you really did change, I did not quite believe Jiraiya's letters but here you are proving him right…" and with that said he tuned to prepare the ramen and was back a couple of moments later.

"I know… The hair was unexpected for me as well." said Naruto after thanking for the food

"Hair? Who said anything about any ruddy red hair?" said the now confused Teuchi, "You eating modestly is what I'm talking about…"

Naruto started laughing so hard he actually started choking on his noodles forcing the old man to bash him several times on the back till he was better. After that he deemed it wise to focus on eating while the old man watched him happily.

"Old man that was amazing as always." stated the now full and happy boy

"Good." threatened the man with a spatula, "You should hang around for a bit as Iruka should probably be here soon."

"How do you know that?" asked the confused boy

"Well after you left, he kind of became a regular here," said Teuchi but with less than enthusiastic tone than before. Naruto could see the small strain in his voice, he would not have noticed it before but Jiraiya thought him to always read body language, even though he latter regretted it as he could see right through him when he was going to a brothel or a pub.

"That's an unhealthy view for a businessman," said Naruto but a realization hit him instantly and he lowered his voce a bit before saying, "Ayame right?"

The old man just spoke something under his breath and continued mumbling turning his back to the boy.

That had to be it, he made a mental note to congratulate Iruka when he actually shows up.

As if realizing someone was speaking about him there he was. He casually took his seat two places from Naruto. The boy did not want to spoil his fun as he waited to see if he could come to the realization himself. Iruka was no closer to a realization as he was when he got there since 5 minutes have passed.

Teuchi was playing his part as he gave no indication of the boy to Iruka. Naruto decided to take the initiative and ask, "Sorry are you a teacher at the academy?"

"Oh yes I am. Please can I help you?" eagerly replied Iruka now facing the boy

"Yes you see I'm a return student and will be joining again tomorrow after a long time." replied Naruto while desperately trying to hold back his laugh

Iruka was now examining the red haired boy from top to bottom, 'I never remember having a red haired student at the academy'

But he did look strangely familiar. 'The whiskers on each cheek, blue eyes.'

No it can't be, it couldn't be, he was dead but he looks just like, "Na… Na… Naruto?"

Naruto gave a small grin of encouragement before saying, "Hello Iruka sensei."

Iruka still could not believe it as he was now up and walking slowly towards the boy he thought long dead, the boy after whom he cried for a long time after his death. As he was nearing him and looking at those blue eyes a look of realization kicked in, he threw a punch toward that face, Naruto's training kicked in as he narrowly escaped the blow but could not escape the second as he hit one of the chairs and staggered.

The blow connected and he was on the floor, Teuchi had a look of horror as he rushed to aid. Iruka was now on top of Naruto aiming blows to his head as the boy had no choice but to hold his guard up. Moments later and Teuchi was behind Iruka dragging him away from Naruto allowing the boy to stand up again. Iruka finally relaxed a bit as he became aware of what had happened as it was a lot of bottled emotion he released. Naruto was now standing with his fists clenched and spitting a bit blood to the side, "What the fuck was that for?!"

"I..I'm sorry Naruto I don't know what happened…" said the now shaking Iruka. Naruto on the other hand was still angry and glaring at Iruka. Seeing that the old man was not near Iruka Naruto sped up and aimed his own punch and there was no avoiding it. Iruka was sent to the ground flying with Teuchi now going to restrain Naruto.

A small crowd was now forming looking to see what the commotion was all about. Iruka was on the ground and Teuchi now restraining Naruto, or to be exact Teuchi was restraining Naruto while the boy made no attempt to continue but just stood there with his fist firmly clenched and a beastly look in his eyes. Iruka was up and was now waving the crowd away and throwing excuses down before turning back to the boy. Numerous apologies ensued as Iruka was explaining a lot of bottled emotions he had after Naruto's death, not telling him he was alive and so on.

Finally… As the dust settled, they went inside, and now it was the old man's time to make a scene. Just before he started Naruto raised a hand to silence him whilst he performed a simple silencing jutsu on the surrounding. And then it happened, a lot of shouting, cursing and all that accompanied by some very angry waving and pointing. Iruka and Naruto were both scolded and had their heads down. As the old man was now tired Naruto released the jutsu before turning to Iruka.

"You throw a mean punch Naruto." said the now smiling Iruka with one of his cheeks way larger than the other.

"Yeah… Yours are not that bad either sensei." said Naruto now smiling as well, with a similar facial problem.

"So you're not dead… And you have red hair?" said Iruka, "So please start with the hair as I have a feeling it will be simpler."

And so Naruto started, the hair was truly the simplest part. Jiraiya started teaching him fuinjutsu while on his trip, for which he had a natural bloodline affinity and the after affects were physical it seems. In other words the more adept he became the more pronounced the color until it finally settled at dark red. The red hair was a trademark of the Uzumaki, along with affinity for fuinjutsu, remarkable stamina as well as healing abilities. And now came the hard part, recalling all the events from the day he was almost killed. He did not like explaining it but knew he had to.

After he was done the both men had a look of anger on their faces and were spewing curses for the council, ANBU and so on.

"Look Naruto I'm really sorry about everything, the things that happened…" started Iruka while pitying the boy

"Iruka," started Naruto withholding anger as much he could, "I do not need or want your pity. I am no longer the young boy I used to be, so just drop it…"

It took just one look at the boy's face and it was evident so Iruka dropped the subject. So they continued to chat and reminisce for some time and Iruka was beyond himself with happiness as Naruto was back and will be in the academy if only for a short time.

Naruto's smile was suddenly nowhere to be seen, he sensed someone he did not want to meet today approaching. Iruka glanced from Naruto to the place he was looking not a moment ago. Sasuke Uchiha poked his head through the curtain and entered as he found Iruka.

"Oh Sasuke what can I do for you?" asked Iruka

"I was told to deliver this to you." said the boy giving Iruka a small package before adding "And what's with your face?"

"Thank you Sasuke," replied Iruka before widening his grin and continuing, "As for the face there is a funny tale which also includes this young man." and pointed to the seat next to him which was now empty.

Sasuke was not impressed as he now observed a confused and slightly panicked teacher, "And what am I supposed to see?" he asked with no interest in the answer anyways

Iruka sighed," Nothing at all, you can go if you don't need me anymore…" said Iruka giving up and waving the boy off

Sasuke just shrugged, gave Tauchi a small bow and left.

That damn Naruto thought Iruka shaking his fist, what was that all about. The old man just starred at the helpless teacher, "Let him go and don't be angry Iruka… There was a reason for that and I suspect I know what it is."

"Oh.." replied Iruka now eying the old man with curiosity

"They used to be good friends before… You know... Naruto left… And they kind of had a big fight and did not leave on good terms, no sorry, they had no chance to make up afterwards."

"How do you know all that? I was their homeroom teacher and they hated each other…" said Iruka now curious more than ever

"I will only tell you because you are a good friend of Naruto's but if it ever goes behind these curtains…" the old man had a spatula ready and was waving it dangerously.

Iruka gulped a bit before agreeing and Teuchi started explaining.

They were really good friends for years, no, best friends. When Sasuke's parents fount about Naruto they went crazy, the proud future head of the clan hanging around with a monster. They forbid him from ever seeing the boy again. This did not stop them, they were just really careful in keeping the family from finding out. Now Teuchi's face took a bit more grim expression.

**Flashback **

**The day before the attack on Naruto**

"C'mon Sasuke they are your family, I know you had a big fight and all but you can't act like this." said Naruto looking at his friend with concern

"What do you know about that?! Ha!" asked the now angry Sasuke

"Well I don't but…" tried to say Naruto before Sasuke but in

"No you don't, so shut up!" yelled Sasuke

"Hey that's no way to treat a friend you baka."

"Then no longer consider me your friend dope, everyone says you're a monster so go and die somewhere already!" said Sasuke while hitting Naruto and knocking him down

Naruto just stood up, looked one last time at Sasuke's angry face and left.

X

Two days later the Uchiha massacre happened…

**End flashback**

"Oh boy…" said Iruka out loud now with a grim expression himself

Teuchi just nodded to that.

"How do you know about that anyway?" asked Iruka dumfounded with so much information.

"Well the two were friends back then and Naruto brought Sasuke here all the time." said the old man with a smile, then turning serious again and continuing," But after the massacre he was looking for Naruto everywhere, and could not find him. He was here pretty much every day hoping to catch him, and actually told me this to make sure I tell him he was sorry."

Iruka was listening carefully to every word the man said fearing as he knew what came next.

"And then the rumors started to spread… … … of Naruto's death." finished Teuchi bitterly

Even as he knew it was coming, Iruka was no more prepared for it. A silence ensued, as both were at a loss for words. Naruto and Sasuke thought Iruka, fate has not been kind to those two… Now he knew why Naruto left.

* * *

Naruto was jumping from roof to roof away from Ichiraku's place until finally jumping to a deserted side street to collect himself. Sasuke's appearance caused a lot of bad memories, which he had buried deep and closed a long time ago. He was pathetic. For all his training and resentment of Konoha he was no more prepared to come here now, than he was a couple of years back, not to mention the fact that the village has yet to receive word of his return. Then the looks in their eyes will start again, the insults and a lot more he did not want to recall. Perhaps he was lucky in a way… to avoid all that if even for a day. It seems he was too complacent while with Iruka and Teuchi.

"Damn it!" he shouted and aimed a punch to the nearby wall making couple of cracks appear.

"Having trouble on your first day Naruto?"

The boy glanced up, there was Jiraiya standing on a roof just above him smilling.

"How did you find me?" asked the now annoyed boy

Jiraiya did not answer but just raised his eyebrows.

"So what do you want? Old man wants to see me?" asked Naruto realizing he will not receive an answer to his former question

"No," said the sage now jumping down to his student before continuing, "he told me to tell you that you can visit when you are ready, tomorrow even if you..." now looking at the cracked wall, "do not feel like talking today."

"That seems like a good idea…" said Naruto now stroking his painful fist

"Come we still have a lot to do." said Jiraiya and turned his back to the boy walking towards the main street

"Like what?" asked Naruto catching up to his teacher and now walking besides him.

"Shopping." replied Jiraiya simply

* * *

**Ok, I made Iruka hit Naruto, guilty as charged. While it will probably feel out of character to most people I am not sure I agree. Well couple of my friends who had a chance to read this before publishing are of the same opinion as most of you.**

**On a more serious note, a similar thing happened to a very good friend of mine, just moved out one day and not to be heard for 5yrs and I did the same thing Iruka did when I ran in to him(he also had a good reason for not calling, dammit, and he punched me back), actually if I was Iruka I would use the large Madara boulder thingy. Oh if you don't care about Iruka at all, and I wrote all this down needlessly, then I will be blushing and hiding in a corner far far away... **

**Btw if you have any issues that need explaining a bit more, and I feel are justified will post explanations here. **


	3. Chapter 3

******Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto/Naruto Shippuden and all rights are under Mr. Kishimoto and/or his respectable company, publisher and so on...**

**And here is the new chapter finally, judging by my current speed I'd say that i will be publishing chapters approximately every 1-5 days, will post any changes in my profile.**

******As always feel free to point out any insights, inconsistencies or anything else for that matter and thanks for reading.**  


* * *

The two men were now walking through a somewhat busy market district.

"So what are we buying anyways?" asked a bored Naruto

"Well first off you need a change of clothes since you will be here awhile." said Jiraiya beaming at the boy.

This statement forced him to take a long look at his clothes. While on the travels, he changed them quite often. Not because of style, but rather necessity. As they never lingered in one place for too long and traversed various countries they needed to fit in, or rather he needed to.

The land of the Waves was their last stop before Konoha, so he was in their somewhat common colors if they can be called that. While they did not have a clothing tradition like some larger countries, they used a white and blue combination for the most part.

Naruto currently wore an old blue and white stripped hakama, with a similarly decorated simple haori kimono and a full body travelling cloak to round it all up.

They walked in silence to one of the largest and most expensive clothing stores in Konoha.

Naruto frowned as he saw the store; it was way over his budget. While his teacher was not poor by any extent of the word, he never paid for anything but the boy's accommodations and literature, forcing him to work any chance he got. He did not hate the sage because of it, as he knew it was for his own sake. Even with all that, he managed to save a good amount of money, probably one of the main reasons he cut down his eating habits as 10 portions of ramen were no small fee on day to day basis.

"This is a bit over my budget." said Naruto

"No… I will be covering this." said Jiraiya now smiling at the boy

"You will what?" said the boy in disbelief

The sage just chuckled and entered the store leaving the boy still trying to process what he heard before following.

The store was everything he expected it to be, large, luxurious and with absurd amount of clothes from various nations. Jiraiya was back from the counter and handing Naruto a small golden card.

"What's this?" asked Naruto now closely examining the card in his hand

"Your method of payment," replied Jiraiya simply, "Make sure to get everything you need, this is a onetime offer. See ya!"

And by the time Naruto raised his head again leafs were swirling in front of him before settling to the ground. The boy just sighed and went to the counter. The card was indeed valid, and the employees were instructed to hold the clothes here and deliver it to a place of his choosing later on.

At the very least he did not have to carry the stuff all over town. Knowing this was going to be difficult he put the cloak aside and dived in the numerous stalls.

Half an hour later, and he was no further to buying anything than he was at the start. He did actually manage to stumble on a set of orange clothes he used to wear a long time ago, other than a small chuckle he passed it without a second thought. Just as he was about to give up a voice reached him.

"If I have ever seen a lost cause, then it is standing right in front of me."

Naruto tuned around only to find himself being analyzed from head to toe, by no other then Ino Yamanaka.

He had not seen her in a long time but there was no mistaking it, and she was more beautiful than ever, even Naruto had to admit. Splendid blonde hair with a high-ponytail with bangs covering the right side of her face; she wore a fashionable purple sleeveless blouse, an open purple skirt over a shorter, black skirt with a short fishnet underneath; she also had fishnet decorative bracers on her knees and elbows.

"I also don't mean to be rude, but this seems to be a bit more expensive store than you are probably used to judging by your clothes." said Ino narrowing her eyes

Yes, this was definitely Ino that Naruto remembered, princess he used to call her, with more interest in fashion and boys than anything ninja related and judgefull as everyone else. To say he was not surprised by a lack of recognition would be an understatement.

As he tried to turn around and save himself the trouble of even responding, she was now in front of him crouching, while examining the golden card in his hand.

And she was back up smiling, "Now that changes everything."

With that said, she was off, leaving him dumbfounded and confused.

Naruto just shrugged not knowing what all that was about, and continued browsing. Not even five minutes passed and she was back.

"Village?" asked Ino

"What?" replied Naruto

"What village are you from? Are you dumb?" asked Ino crossing her arms this time

"Konoha" said Naruto narrowing his eyes with his temper raising rapidly, "What…"

And she was off not letting him even finish, 'What the hell is wrong with that girl?!'

Naruto was getting pissed and deciding to give her a peace of his mind if she shows herself again.

Luckily he did not have to wait for long and there she was a couple of minutes later, clothes in both her hands.

"Here try these on." she said holding out the clothes

" Why would I want to try these on?" asked a surprised but still angry Naruto

"Because they will look good on you." replied Ino in a matter of fact voice

"And why should I event try these on over my own choices?"

"Well you were wondering around here for half an hour with no end in sight and I'm trying to help you." replied Ino while forcing the clothes in his hands before crossing her hands and glaring at him.

She did have a point Naruto thought, but still," Will you leave me alone if I try these on?" he asked hopefully raising the clothes a bit as if trying to make a point.

"If you don't like them than I will leave you." said Ino , as Naruto was about to turn around, "But… If you do," she continued dangerously, "you will buy me one piece of clothing of my choice."

"Fine!" replied Naruto now going towards the nearest changing cabinet.

He was too busy thinking various insults to actually spare a thought at what he was putting on, by the time he was done, it was too late. He was fully dressed in front of the cabinet mirror.

"Crap." he said out loud, facing his reflection. He wore long black pants with his usual black sandals, a red long sleeved shirt with a black Uzushiogakure(Uzumaki) crest at front, an open front black jacket embodied with another red Uzushiogakure crest at the back, and to his delight, just a small Konoha one sewn in upper right side. His jacket also had a shoulder guards made from a couple of interconnected metal plates, a solid extra protection if need be.

A new hip pouch was next to his old worn out one, it was pitch black with one red line encircling it, "Crap!" he repeated but a bit louder this time.

The outfit was amazing and it fitted him perfectly, it was a combination of black and dark red, pronouncing his hair to the fullest, he liked it a lot.

The Konoha crest was barely visible, as for the Uzushiogakure crests they represented his heritage a lot more than they did Konoha.

"You done already?" shouted an annoyed voice from outside

He was beaten fair and square, time to face the charges.

Ino was pouting outside, still angry at the red haired boy for talking to her like that. That had not prepared her for when he walked outside. She was now bewildered from the scene, actually forgetting to act angry, the boy was really handsome, and she, she was dazed.

"Wow, I could actually date you." said Ino not conscious enough to notice that she said it out loud

"You date me?" asked Naruto raising his eyebrows

Ino blushed as the realization kicked in but managed to clumsily collect herself moments after, "Ha, caught you, I knew you will like the outfit and that's why I said it."

Naruto was studying her reply, damn it, even he was blushing a bit, if only slightly, but handled it a lot better than she did.

"Fine you win, I will get you what you want…" he admitted half heartily

Ino just grinned to that, another free piece of clothing.

"But I first need to get all the stuff I need."

Ino just nodded to that and they continued shopping. She also helped him some more, or to be more precise she was happy when he bought something she liked, and pouting whenever he chose something that didn't have her approval.

He bought everything he needed, from underwear which he enjoyed the most, as Ino could not be seen anywhere near, up to formalwear where it had an opposite effect.

He now had four bags by the counter and was using his card to pay for everything he bought. While he used the card to buy all his clothes, decided to use his own money to pay for a dress of Ino's choosing, and regretting it moments later as it was really expensive.

"Do you have an address for delivery right now or will you be adding one later?" inquired the salesclerk

This gave him a moment's pause, he had no intention of returning to his old apartment, it had probably been stripped of any indications he ever lived there by the ANBU, and most likely had someone living there as well.

"I will be adding one later." replied Naruto

"You don't have a place to live yet?" asked Ino

"Not yet." replied Naruto while walking outside

He decided to keep wearing the clothes he bought as they felt a lot more comfortable than the old ones, which he bagged with the rest.

They were now standing in front of the shop as Ino asked, "Do you need help with the apartment hunting as you seem to need one?

Before he had a chance to reply a voice reached them, they both turned around to see a pink haired girl running towards them. Naruto slightly narrowed his eyes examining the girl; it was definitely Sakura.

"There you are." happily shouted Sakura before catching up to them

Naruto examined the girl up close, she was very similar in appearance to her former self. Granted she cut her hair shorter and was a lot taller, maybe slightly less than Ino. She wore a sleeveless red dress with a same white sign as before, while matching pink shorts and elbow bracers were new. Although the girl looked good, he could not face too look hear in that way ever again.

While she may not be the same person she used to be, he knew he would find a hard time liking her, the past was still hard to forget.

"Oh, Sakura…" said a unexpected Ino, "Can I help you with something?"

"I need your help." said Sakura looking dead serious

"What do you need?" asked the now alert Ino

"Shopping." replied Sakura narrowing her eyes

Naruto watched them share a meaningful gaze for which he was sure no one but girls could ever understand; he actually chuckled afterwards and unintentionally brought them back to reality.

"Oh Sakura, this is…" and Ino was suddenly silent

That's right, he never told her his name, it was funny in a way. The princess shopping with the academy idiot, least popular and a guy she openly despised before. 'I think this will spoil your reputation princess.'

Sakura was now staring from a abashed Ino stuck dead in the middle of her own sentence to a red haired boy with a slight smug expression, while she had no idea who he was, he looked really familiar.

"A guy who she helped shopping." said Naruto finishing the sentence

" That's right." confirmed Ino raising the dress a bit up, as if presenting evidence.

"Anyways I need to be going as I have a lot to do." with that said he started walking away from the still confused girls.

Managing to get a couple of meters away he glanced back, "Thanks for the help with shopping Ino", making sure to say her name a bit louder while carrying on forward.

Ino was lost in thought and just kept looking at the boy's back, 'I don't remember ever giving him my name. How the hell does he know my name?'

"Hey… You did not give me yours!" she shouted after him, but he was already out of hearing range.

Sakura now turned towards Ino, "Who was that?

"I don't know." replied Ino honestly, "But he looked familiar somehow."

Sakura nodded to that.

"But he is cute." said Ino returning to normal

"True," replied Sakura, "but nowhere near Sasuke-kun…", she continued

And the two friends started bickering about which will win Sasuke over.

* * *

Naruto had actually heard Ino, but saw no need to enlighten them, 'They will find out soon enough.'

Now he needed to find Jiraiya to discuss his accommodation, running around and looking for him would have no point, he knew Jiraiya would find him eventually.

He managed to stumble to a nice looking tea house, since he had nothing better to do, might as well sit and relax.

The tea barely had a chance to cool down and Jiraiya was entering the tea house, and siting by Naruto moments later.

"Wow… You actually look good for a change." stated Jiraiya examining the boy

The boy just nodded but Jiraiya pressed on.

"Almost like someone else chose the clothes for you, it was a girl wasn't it?" asked Jiraiya winking at the boy.

Jiraiya tried for some time to get more information out of Naruto but to no avail, before finally having to concede defeat.

"The hokage has prepared some accommodations for…" started Jiraiya

"Don't want it." Naruto cut in immediately

"I was expecting that." said Jiraiya lowering his head a bit and passing a paper sheet to the boy.

Naruto examine the paper in his hands, it was a list of addresses with places being put up for rent and in his spending budget, seven in total.

"You know that the place you are offered is free, the hokage even said something about passing ownership to you if you like it." asked Jiraiya raising his eyebrows a bit

"I do not want the village's pity." said Naruto not even glancing away from the list

"Don't think of it like that, it's more of a small material compensation." said Jiraiya, "And you can always sell it later."

Naruto was not going to let himself be tempted in to it, this in not anywhere near the compensation needed to even consider forgiveness, and that is exactly what this gift was, or at least an acknowledgment of the beginning of it.

While he had nothing against the hokage as a person, as he was always treated with respect from the man in the past. Now he was a representation, a face of the thing he now despised, Konoha.

The only reason he was even here, was because of the man to whom he owed his life, a person whose request he would never let down, those of the person sitting opposite of him.

'Two years in this place is a small price to pay in returning a part of you had done for me Jiraiya.'

His promise that he would do his best in while in Konoha, protect it, follow its rules and do whatever was requested of him was something he intended to fulfill.

'But I will not love the village, after two years are up, I will be gone, never to return again.'

"Are you daydreaming again?" asked Jiraiya observing the boy in front of him who was clearly lost in thought.

"Sorry," replied Naruto; "but I will be refusing the offer."

Jiraiya just sighed giving up; he knew it was going to turn out like this, 'Stupid boy'

Naruto was up and going outside.

"Oi, don't you want me to go with you?"

This surprised him as he glanced back towards his teacher, "You weren't going to pull your usual disappearing act?"

The sage just started laughing while scratching the back of his head, 'Thought so.'

* * *

Almost two hour later and he had yet to find a good place to rent. He was off to the last one on the list, 'Hope this one will be it, as I'm out of options.'

The best place so far was far from his liking, granted it was in the center and close to all the shops but was severely overpriced for the size, not to mention a couple was arguing above them the entire time the man was showing him around. It was still good, had no rats or bugs like some others, and it had furniture.

The district he was walking through housed the Yamanaka, Nara and Akemichi clans. He finally reached the last address, it was a two story house and according to his note the second floor is up for rent. It was a quaint little house, solid construction and the second floor was separated by stairs from the outside.

While the location was a bit far from the village center it shouldn't pose that big a problem for shopping. He recalled that all the bigger clans have their own shops where they buy weapons and supplies, there are three here, so at least one shop must be nearby.

Even the walls of the Nara compound could be seen further down the road so it was not that bad a place.

He knocked a couple of times at the front door, no one was answering. Naruto was not happy, after all that walking to just be turned away as no one was home. He desperately knocked again but a lot harder, this actually paid off as he could hear some muffled sounds from the inside.

And it finally opened almost a minute later.

"Hai, I'm here, why did you knock so many times?"

Naruto was in shock as he recognized the person immediately, it was Shikamaru Nara. Judging by his looks he was sleeping not moments before. At first glance he looked like a typical Konoha ninja. He wore the standard black outfit with a long sleeved black shirt while his green flak jacket resembled the one worn by the regular forces giving him that impression. There was no mistaking the black spiky ponytail and brown eyes which gave him away.

Shikamaru seemed to have a similar recognition on his face staring back at the red haired boy, and just when Naruto thought that he was found out, Shikamaru's face took a neutral look.

"So, what can I do for you?"

"Oh, sorry for staring as you seem kind of familiar y'know." clumsily replied Naruto, "I am here about the apartment upstairs."

Sikamaru slightly raised his eyebrows at the "y'know" part but was otherwise unaffected.

"Sure, follow me" he replied lazily while walking past Naruto and heading towards the stairs.

"Sorry but are you living downstairs or?" asked Naruto while following him up.

"No, my family is renting this house, the ground floor is already taken but the new inhabitants will be here in a couple of days, I'm here to act as a tour boy."

Naruto laughed a bit at the "tour boy" remark but otherwise stayed silent. Shikamaru was a much better guide than he imagined, it did feel like he was reciting a script, but impressive none the less. The apartment was fantastic, it had a small kitchen with a dining table, spacious living room, bedroom and a toilet, but the best part was the balcony.

Much to his surprise the price was good as well, while more expensive than the other places it was well worth it.

"I'll take it." said the satisfied Naruto while looking over his new place

"Good, that means I can finally return home." said Shikamaru with his hands on his head, "Oh, one more thing I forgot to mention."

"Yes?" enquired Naruto fearing that there was a catch about the price since it seemed fair

"I know you like ramen, but there aren't any good shops nearby." said Shikamaru

"Oh that's not a…" started a relived Naruto but was struck dead with his own words, collecting himself immediately afterwards, and was now smiling, "You caught me Shikamaru."

Shikamaru had a smug expression, "Welcome back Naruto."

It was not all that surprising that he was found out by Shikamaru, he remembered back in the academy when they made them take IQ tests. Shikamaru scored the highest, while most thought he cheated including the academy teachers. They made him retake the test twice while hiding their intent to try to trick him; he actually scored higher than before.

But it still was baffling how he found out.

"So how did you know, I mean other the 'y'know' part?" asked Naruto

"While that would not give you away at all, I kind of did know you were not dead…"

"But how?" asked a confused Naruto

"Do I really need to explain?" asked Shikamaru hopefully

"Yes!" Naruto was adamant

Shikamaru just sighed knowing that Naruto would not let him leave before the explanation, 'Troublesome, should have stayed quiet.'

"Well you know we used to be the ones who slept the most during class. Well the teachers always focused on you rather than me."

Naruto just courtly nodded, he remembered that, in fact everything he used to do was treated like he had a magnifier pinned to him.

"And with you gone, they focused solely on me; it was troublesome so I did a small investigation."

Naruto raised his brows a bit while hearing this but kept silent.

Shikamaru explained how everyone who he casually asked, replied that it was rumored that he was dead, but not one person confirmed it.

Looking over Naruto's former apartment found out it was stripped clean. While none of this was suspicious on its own, the final clue was in the archives.

Shikamaru explained when he saw Naruto's archive card and it had no mention of his death whatsoever; by the time he visited it, it was 3 months since the rumors started.

Naruto knew where Shikamaru was going with this and was impressed so far. While he was not all that knowledgeable about laws before, he did read several books about them in his travels with Jiraiya, the sage was adamant about him learning the major ones at least as they traversed various countries.

The one law supported by almost all nations, if anyone with any shinobi reference(student, ninja or samurai) was presumed dead or missing for over a month, his archive information need to be changed to either MIA(mission in action), have a note of absence, a missing nin clarifications or a death certificate.

"Very smart Shikamaru." stated Naruto, 'Seems that the local AMBU must be losing their grip'

"I'm not done yet." said Shikamaru

Naruto was surprised by this, he thought nothing more can be done after the archives; he considered them a reasonable suspicion but a dead end as well, "So there is more?"

Shikamaru nodded before continuing. He casually mentioned that he stumbled at the reference in the archives to a random jounin.

"Wait, wouldn't that make it even more suspicious and force them to keep the archives either like they were or simply fake a death certificate?" asked a confused Naruto

Shikamaru just shrugged and said, "I am a really good liar when I need to be", but did not clarify what the lie was.

"So what happened next?" asked Naruto

"Well I lazed on a nearby building for a couple of hours afterwards, and there they were, a couple of ANBU. When I went to check, your complete file was missing."

'That must have been some lie to fool the ANBU from just correcting the mistake, and making them feel safe enough to remove the file completely, while not leading suspicion upon yourself. But that still does not explain how he knew about me not being dead'

"There is more." continued Shikamaru

"You're kidding!" replied a skeptical Naruto

"Just to make sure I checked the archive every three months from that time onward, and the file was back almost 3 months ago with one change. While it still did not say anything about your current status same as before there was just one thing different… "

"What? What was different?" asked Naruto thinking that he couldn't possibly be shocked anymore

Shikamaru was looking at the newest change on his long lost classmate, "It said you have red hair."

After a lengthy awkward silence, that lasted some time it was Naruto who broke it.

"Thank you Shikamaru." said Naruto dead serious and held out his hand

"Well you don't need to than me for explaining all that." said Shikamaru now looking uncomfortable with his hands behind his head again.

But Naruto was still holding his hand and waiting, it took a couple of more moment in silence before Shikamaru held his own and they had a handshake.

Even though Shikamaru started this story with an excuse that was hard to believe from the start, the further he got in the story the more silly it looked. It seems he had a good friend long before even he had realized that.

"While I can't tell you exactly why I left the village, I can tell you that I was out with a private teacher, being a traveling student."

Shikamaru was silent, but alert seeing this was not easy for Naruto to say.

"But I can tell you I now hate Konoha and don't ask me why" Shikamaru was now the one surprised but kept silent as Naruto continued, "while I don't intend to be in the village for more than two years." Naruto now paused a bit, "that does not mean I am any less loyal to my friends or my future comrades, now and after."

Shikamaru was now observing the new Naruto and analyzing all the things he heard.

The anger he harbored for Konoha was evident, it actually made shivers run through his spine when he was talking about it. While he did not know what the cause is, it must have been something earth braking.

While this was no longer the Naruto he knew, one thing is still the same.

Shikamaru even smiled unwillingly while thinking about this. His personality may be different, his look, the way he talked, even his appearance is completely different…

'One thing will never change… His loyalty to his friends…'

Shikamaru stayed some more as they traded stories in a less tense environment, the contract was later signed and Naruto was an official resident. Shikamaru also made a promise to Naruto not to reveal anything said here, or the fact that he was alive as he would release it tomorrow in the academy.

"NARUTO!" came a dangerous voice from outside

Naruto knew the voice well, it was Jiraiya, and he was pissed, 'Probably because he saw the price for my clothes'

They said their goodbyes and Shikamaru went home leaving Naruto to face the wrath of a sannin alone. The rest of the day was uneventful, he bought all the things he needed and his clothes have been delivered. By the evening the apartment was fully set, he discussed the plans for tomorrow with Jiraiya and was now lying in his new bed ready to go to sleep.

The day was really eventful as he was dead tired.

Tomorrow the academy awaits...

* * *

**Have I ever mentioned how much I hate describing clothes? I hate it hate it hate it hate it hate it hate it... Feel slightly better now...**

**Hope you liked the chapter, if you did(blushing) please review. I you didn't****(pouting)** then by all means review even more and tell me why as it may help me in the future, I am walking blind here without that, I'm serious!

**Writing a long chapter with just 2 long scenes, not very fun... Making 2 chapters out of a singe day... Even less... Will remedy that in the future...**

**As always ****thanks for reading...**


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